


Three Times Peter Latched On

by tootiredmotel



Category: Avengers: Infinity War - Fandom, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Avengers Family, Fluff, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Multi, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Whump, comfort? What’s that?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-28
Updated: 2018-04-29
Packaged: 2019-04-29 00:58:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14461656
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tootiredmotel/pseuds/tootiredmotel
Summary: Super strength be damned, he’s holding on tight.(Update: I’ve seen infinity war and hate life. Chapter 2&3 have spoilers)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> "How's your son? Peepee?" 
> 
>  
> 
> "Peter, actually, and he's not my son."
> 
>  
> 
> "Mr. Stark, it's a reference."

Tony walked into the living room area of the compound, not expecting to see everyone there waiting on a loading Netflix screen. 

 

"Press play already." Bucky spoke, annoyed, from his seat next to Natasha and Clint on one of the couches.  Sam stared back, looking annoyed right back at Bucky. "It's loading, you m-" 

 

"Language, Sam." 

 

Always the voice of reason, Steve spoke up from his spot at the smaller couch next to Thor. Tony made his presence known, choosing not to comment on the 'language' tidbit this time. "What is going on here?"

 

"Peter's got us hooked on The Office. We're on season 4, just glad Jim and Pam are finally together." Clint answered, not even looking up. _Super spies._

 

"Actually, It's just Clint, Bucky and Thor that Peter got addicted to the show." Natasha, unlike her former S.H.I.E.L.D. buddy, did look up. "We're all just here for the ride. Except Rhodes, who started watching this on his own apparently." Rhodey's head popped up at his name being mentioned. He was on the love seat, an open seat next to him. So Tony took it. 

 

 

 

A couple of episodes in and they were all laughing at the antics of the characters, enjoying each other's company.

 

 

_"You took me by the hand, made me a man"_

 

"This isn't weird to just me, right?" Tony looked at the people around him. Steve was trying not to laugh out loud, Bucky, Sam and Bruce were smiling. Then there was Clint and Rhodey actually laughing.

 

_"That one night"_

 

"One night!"

 

Peter sang out, coming from the entrance after being dropped off by Happy. He was greeted instantly. "Peter!" "Man of Spiders!" "Underoos!"

 

_"You made everything alright"_

 

"Didn't realize what time it was, I would've met you out there." Peter plopped down between Tony and Rhodey and the billionaire didn't know how, since there wasn't much room to begin with. Peter seemed to have realized it himself so he situated himself on the top of the couch. "No worries, just glad you'll understand my references now." Tony rolled his eyes. _Of course._  

 

After two more episodes, Wanda, Vision, Sam and Thor had gone to bed. Peter, although was obviously going to fall asleep any minute, claimed they "couldn't hang" and his head then dipped into Tony's shoulder. His eyes were half-lidded an Natasha almost cooed. Almost. 

 

Peter jolted awake when the character Tony came to know as Stanley did the 'did I stutter' bid. By that point, it was just the two of them, Rhodey, Bucky and Clint. The latter stood up from his place, stretching. "Alright, I'm hitting the sack." Bucky nodded in agreement and the two headed down to the quarters. Clint was going back to the farm after all. 

 

"You planning on staying here? The couch is comfortable, but not that comfortable." 

 

Tony looked down at Peter, whose head rested on his chest, legs sprawled over where Rhodey was. "Yeah, I'll be fine for now." Smiling, he ran a through Peter's hair, smoothing out the curls as much as they would allow. Like the kid, his hair was stubborn. Rhodey smiled before taking off to his own room. 

 

"Underoos, come on, time to get up." Peter didn't budge, if anything he burrowed himself in even closer somehow. "Peter, come on. It's time for bed and I am not-" _Fine. Fine fine fine fine fine fine._ Without further notice, Tony began to re-position the teen. He didn't want to have to lean over to pick the kid up, he'd just pull something. _Not_ from his age. Just that Peter was a growing teenager and Tony isn't Captain America. If he tried that he'd probably throw his back out. Again, _not_ because of his age. 

 

So instead, Tony pulled Peter to his chest, gathering the teenager's long legs with his now free right arm. _He totally did not struggle to stand using his abs, thank you very much Mr-Gym-Class-PSA._ "Alright, time for bed." 

 

The walk to Peter's room wasn't long, but he did make his steps a bit smaller, if only to make the moment last. Nudging the door open with his foot, Tony slid into the spiderling's bedroom and flicked off the lights. He made sure to keep the door open a bit to allow the light from the hallway inside. Depositing Peter onto the bed, he pried the sheets and blanket out from under him.  _Probably should have done that part first, not that he could since Peter's arms were wrapped around the billionaire's neck. Little spider monkey._ He made sure to remove the kid's shoes before tucking him in, at least.

 

Managing to pry the arms off of him, he sat down on the bed next to where Peter lay, smoothing back some of the curls. _God help this kid and mask hair._  

 

"Thanks, Mr. Stark. 'Just didn't wanna walk." Tony rolled his eyes,  _little shit._

 

 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (!!!!!IW SPOILERS!!!!!) 
> 
> “I don’t wanna go”

_”You've got to be kidding me.”_

 

_They debated for a bit, Peter trying to make his case._

 

_“-suit’s so cool”_

 

_”so really it’s your fault I’m here, if you think about it”_

* * *

 

_“I’m back up!”_

_“No, you’re a stowaway, the adults are talking.”_

* * *

 

 

“Mister Stark? I don’t feel so good.”

 

_God, not him too, please._

 

Peter started stumbling forward, he wouldn’t meet Tony’s eyes. Like he couldn’t.  _It’s because he’s dying. You let him stay and now he’s dying._

 

  
“You’re all right.” 

 

_He’s a scared kid, ‘alright’ is not going to help. Do something_

 

  
“I don-I don’t know what’s happening, I don’t understand” 

 

Peter fell forward, into his mentor’s arms and _latched on._  He could feel how tightly the teenager was gripping but he didn’t care, it meant he hadn’t disappeared yet. Maybe he wasn’t going to disappear? Maybe it was just the effects of the concussion he no doubt had after being slammed into the ground by that grape kool-aid looking mother-

  
“I don’t wanna go, I don’t wanna go, please Stark, please, I don’t wanna go, I don’t wanna go”

 

It broke Tony’s heart, the way Peter was weeping, begging. If he had the power to, Peter wouldn’t be going anywhere. 

 

Tony was struggling to hold him because he was just stabbed. That didn’t even begin to hold a light to Peter, though. Because at least he wasn’t about to fade away. 

 

Both his and Peter’s legs gave out and he tried to not collapse on top of the kid, he was already getting this shit, he didn’t need a grown man falling on him, super strength or not.

 

” _And if you died, I feel like that’s on me.”_

_How could that have been just two years ago, when he was feeling it more than ever right here, right now_

  
“I’m sorry”

 

_No. No, no, kid._

 

He didn’t even realize he wasn’t vocalizing that until Peter looked off. 

 

_God, no. Please, no. Not him, not Peter. Not this intelligent, kind kid that couldn’t stop making pop culture references if his life depended on it. Not perfect, precious Peter Parker._

He could only watch as Peter turned to ash, not even able to hold him in place as if that would keep him there, keep him solid. 

 

_You were supposed to keep him safe. You promised him, you promised May. You promised. Now you have to explain to May why her nephew is gone. Just, disintegrated. Really, it’s your fault he’s gone._

 

_“I dreamt we had a kid”_

_Peter Parker might not have been Morgan Stark, but was still a kid. Still his kid. His responsibility._

 

He looked, his eyes followed Peter’s ashes and wondered where he was going. He’d follow in a heartbeat. He’d give anything to just hear another “really old movie” reference. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m dead inside.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spoilers, again 
> 
> This one is more of a fix-it

Clint, Ronin, _whatever_ , is back. Kind of. He was kind of bitter that even after everything he went through, Clint and Scott left retirement. Sure, it was for the greater good, but Tony had helped them get that deal because it was hard on their families. Clint had three kids, Scott had his daughter. If Peter were still...

 

Tony and Pepper decided to wait on a kid for a bit more until this whole mess was over. Even though Peter wasn’t theirs, it still felt like he lost his son. 

 

He wishes he could go back in time to make sure he never got on the ship in the first place.  _“Oh, come on!”_

 

Or at least to knock Quill unconscious, so that the man wouldn’t let his emotions guide him. Because they were so close, it could’ve all been over. 

 

_“Why’d you do that?”_

 

He knows why. But he still thinks Quill could’ve waited until they got the gauntlet off. He and Peter were so close, they almost had it. Mantis had the _purple scrotum chin_ under, Drax and Strange were holding him down. “ _Parker, I need your help over here!”_

 

He told Quill not to engage. He told him. He even walked away to tell him not to, leaving it to Peter. Kid almost had it off, too. Turns out even restraining Quill wouldn’t do anything. Peter had the glove almost off entirely, it would’ve just taken one more pull but Thanos woke himself up. 

 

He remembers when they were all fighting, before _that_ little disaster. Peter was quippy and a smartass, but if you walk it like you talk it, why not? 

 

_“Magic! More magic! Magic with a kick! Magic with-”_

He almost had a heart attack when Thanos gripped Peter by the neck then, calling him an insect and then threw him off. 

 

He couldn't say he was ungrateful for Peter to not witness him being stabbed. He couldn’t bare putting the kid through it, not when he was finally recovering from his Uncle. 

 

_“You ever see that really old movie Alien?”_

 

_”Is Footloose still the greatest movie of all time?” Quill, having never experienced something better apparently. And then his Peter being a smart ass. “It never was.”_

 

His thoughts were interrupted when Strange came out of nowhere, well, not nowhere, a portal. But practically nowhere since last he saw, the wizard disintegrated like the rest of them. 

 

“You remember what I said, about it being the only way? This is it.” 

 

He didn't waste any time. It was time to end Thanos for real this time. 

 

“ _If we can’t protect the earth, you can be damn sure we’ll avenge it”_

 

He’s about to say ‘let’s do this’ when someone else steps through the portal. “They’re coming, Strange. We need to _go_.” And damn if the voice doesn’t sound familiar. He almost lurches forward and brings Peter into a bone crushing hug, but something is off. 

 

This is Peter, before he died. He doesn’t know that there’s a reason for a bone crushing hug. 

 

“Doctor Strange! We have to go, _now_!” 

 

Strange closes the portal behind him and Peter, who was stepped out, and opens another one. “Tony. I told Peter the plan, he can fill you in. But we have to go.” 

 

* * *

They went. Peter of the past-probably less than twenty four hours of his death-goes back to when he belongs. 

 

Suddenly he’s back on Titan, exhausted from time traveling. But he knows he has to be ready for whatever he’s about to face. He’s expecting the fight with Thanos, just one where it’s the purple thumb head that gets stabbed and not him. He’s even expecting, hoping it’s one where Quill _doesn’t_ interrupt the process of getting the gauntlet off and he can introduce Peter to Thor before they go home. 

 

This, though, this kind of stings. 

 

There’s ashes everywhere and he thinks maybe they failed, that somewhere along the way it went wrong. 

 

But then Mantis is being reformed before him, immediately followed by Drax and Quill. So he turns, expecting to see Strange reforming, but the wizard is already standing there. Figures. 

 

None of that matters though, because next to him on the ground Peter is coming back to him. 

 

Mantis is finished first and waits for Drax and Quill, who come not long after. 

 

His heart hurts, watching Peter being pieced back together. And then suddenly he’s gasping for air. Tony gives him a moment to breathe before pulling him in close and tight. _Solid_. 

 

“I have the weirdest feeling, Mr. Stark.” 

 

Tony doesn’t know how to respond, he’s too busy holding his kid in his arms. “I’m updating the baby monitor protocol.” 

 

They laugh, but they both know he’s not joking. 

 

For now though they just sit there on the ground and latch onto each other. Neither one letting go anytime soon. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I saw IW. I’m super tired from crying.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm seeing IW today.....................................................................................................................


End file.
